Ethics Approvals (Human Participants) Sub-Committee

Terms of Reference

To consider ethical issues relating to the research (including enterprise activities) and teaching of the University which involves investigations on human participants. This can include work undertaken on University premises by persons other than the staff and students of the University.

To produce guidance documents for researchers on ethical issues that relate to investigations on human participants and to publish these guidelines on the University web-pages.

To be available to give advice to staff and students of the University who wish to undertake such investigations on the ethical considerations involved.

To keep the University Code of Practice on investigations on human participants under review and to recommend to the Ethics Committee such modifications as from time to time are deemed necessary.

As a matter of routine, to consider the ethical implications of individual proposals for investigations on human participants and to advise whether or not these are acceptable.

Individual proposals will be considered on a monthly basis and decisions will be full approval, conditional approval or not approved:

Full approval will be complete approval, with no alterations needed. The study may begin straightaway.

Conditional approval will consist of comments returned to the investigators. Investigators will have six weeks after receiving the comments to respond. If investigators do not respond to the comments within six weeks, conditional approval will be withdrawn. Extensions and reminders regarding the six-week deadline will be provided.

Not approved will mean that the proposal has been rejected, and the investigators will have to re-apply for ethical approval.

To meet once in each term to discuss proposals and other ethical issues and to meet nine other times in the year to discuss proposals only. All meetings will be reported to the Ethics Committee. Investigators will wait no longer than six weeks from submission of a proposal to an initial decision on that proposal.

To communicate regularly with the Research Committee and the Health, Safety and Environmental Committee by way of an annual report via Ethics Committee.

To escalate any complex proposals, repeat offenders with regards to proposals, or issues with Schools, to the Ethics Committee for their consideration.

To perform annual audit of all proposals to ensure that the correct procedures and paperwork are being maintained.